Envoy of the Storm
by True the Noble
Summary: What would happen if Naruto gained all three of the elements his parents had? Water, Wind, and Lightning. All aspects of the perfect storm... Rated M. Suggestions welcome. DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto. Kishimoto does. Naruto/Mei T. Mei will be seven years older than Naruto. Temp Hiatus while i write the next chapters. I want a chapter per year in the story during the trip.
1. Birth of a Legend

Prologue...

CRASH!

Another building down. The Kyuubi no kitsune was standing in the midst of the now ruined konohagakure no sato. The civilians of the village were all in the process of being evacuated, and the process wasn't going fast enough. The resident Konoha shinobi were all trying their hardest to get the civilians out of the village. To do so, and do so effectively, they had to block any and all debris that was falling out of the sky. Until the time came that all the civilians were gone and out of the way, they couldn't fight back. Not that they thought that they stood much of a chance as a single force without the Yondaime Hokage, the current leader of the village. The populace revered the man as one of the greatest shinobi of all time. With him by their side, they could surely win. Right? Another crash. Where was he?

"There he is! It's Yondaime-sama!" someone screamed. Sure enough, an enormous toad dropped down from the sky and landed right on top of the Kyuubi. It gave a feral roar in anger, and suddenly disappeared. Just over the crest of a nearby mountain, a large dust cloud was kicked up, and it drew the attention of all the people who could see it. The message was clear enough: Yondaime-sama would handle this. Even so, any ninja worth his salt would never leave that man to fight alone against a biju of all things, especially the strongest of them all. Dozens of ninja were sprinting over the rooftops in an attempt to get there faster, and help their courageous leader. When the first ninja arrived, it was in time to see the Yondaime get impaled on the kyuubi's claw along with his wife, Kushina. Both seemed to be determined to stop the claw from hitting a small child with short blond hair, and blue eyes that you would just be able to see if you looked closely enough.

'what's an infant doing here?' was the general thought among the shinobi as they came out of the woodwork to see what could possibly be the final moments of the Yondaime's life. By this time all the shinobi were amassed and could clearly hear what the impaled couple would say next.

"Naruto, my son, I'll never get to see you grow up and get married. I'll never get the opportunity to spoil my grandchildren." Kushina Uzumaki-Namikaze gave a short, bitter laugh at that. "I'll always love you." she finished.

"Naruto, I may not be there to see you grow older and live a happy life, but the least I can do is give my son the means to better defend himself, right? This is my first and last gift to you, for you are the only one I can trust with this power. I hope you forgive me one day." Minato Namikaze, the Yondaime Hokage, spoke to his only child.

The assembled shinobi couldn't believe their ears. Their leader had a child, and they only just found out? This kid would be great, and a select few personally vowed to themselves they would be there for him or her every step of the way.

The Kyuubi pulled its paw back, pulling its claw out of the couple, and Minato moved out of the way just in time to avoid getting skewered by the chakra chains that sprouted out of Kushina's back. The chains dug into the ground and then burst out and wrapped around the beast, halting its progress. Minato blurred through one hundred forty-six handseals, and held his hand far above his head. An image of the Shinigami, visible only to Minato and the kyuubi, appeared and put its ethereal hand through Minato, and reached for the kyuubi. It latched onto the Kyuubi, and pulled out the conscious part of the beast. All of the chakra the kyuubi had coalesced into Minato's hand, and he slapped his hand down onto baby Naruto's stomach. The shinobi watched, transfixed as the beast faded away, and the Yondaime sealed the chakra into his only child.

"Yondaime-sama is truly a noble person." spoke an old and weary voice all recognized as the Sandaime Hokage. "Condemning his child to a life of hardship simply because he could not ask another parent to do what he himself could not." He said. As the monster faded, the Yondaime fell over, his last sight from this world was his wife lying with their child.

'A perfect picture' Minato thought as he passed on to the Shinigami's stomach to fight eternally. 'perks of the Shiki Fujin.' he thought bitterly.

All of the ninja in attendance, which was the entire ninja population of the village, listened to the voice of the Sandaime Hokage as he spoke.

"We have just witnessed the birth of a legend." spoke the wizened old man.

-True the Noble


	2. It all started with a flash of lightning

It all started with a flash of lightning...

The sun was just rising above the great wall of Konoha, and just as it rose, so too did a young blond boy with bright blue eyes and spiky blonde hair. The boy, Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto, awoke to the smell of breakfast that was being cooked downstairs by his caretaker, Hatake Kakashi. He bolted upright and got tangled in the deep purple blankets as he attempted to rush downstairs.

'Aniki only makes breakfast in the morning if there is something important he wants to tell me, and wants me to get up with no problems...wonder what it is?' Naruto thought as he zipped through the halls of his estate. It wasn't a mansion by any means, but it was large enough to be able to comfortably support a family of seven and still have a small guest room for the odd days that Kushina or Minato would have someone over. He stayed in the room that was originally designed for him. The one that originally had a bassinet in it in preparation for the small child it would be housing. The one right down the hallway from the master bedroom, which had remained untouched since the last occupants last opened the doors to the room. The one his Aniki told him Minato fought tooth and nail to have painted a sky blue rather than the pink that his wife wanted to make it, regardless of whether or not Naruto turned out to be a girl. He shivered a bit any time he thought about growing up in a pink room for the first five years of his life, and any time he thought of it, he thanked his Tou-san vehemently. The house only had two floors, and all the bedrooms were on the second floor. The first floor housed the kitchen, a bathroom, dining room, and a storage closet. In the back yard, which he saw as he ran by the back door made of glass, had a small shed-like thing in it, which was actually a small onsen. Also in the backyard was practice dummies and targets, with a few kunai and shuriken sticking out of the center of them. Even though he was too young to actually own it, no one saw a problem with letting the Yondaime's son live in his father's house. Coupled with the fact that the Yondaime's prized student was living there as well, everyone thought that the village's brightest five year old prodigy, who was well on his way to being a genin after he graduated next year, was in better-than-great hands. I mean, who better to teach the boy than the man who learned from his father?

"Hey Aniki! What's the big news?" Naruto asked as he sprinted to a spot at the table, where the masked man was setting the last of the heated up food.

"Does there have to be anything important for me to tell you for me to make a nice hot breakfast for my favorite blonde? Have you no faith in me?" Kakashi asked as he adopted a feigned hurt look in his eye. Unfortunately, his Otouto didn't buy it for a second, and responded rather quickly.

"Yes. Now what is it?" Naruto asked.

"Impatient aren't we? Eat. Then we'll go to the Hokage's office. That's what's so important." Kakashi said as he sat down and put some food on his plate. While the process, he took of his mask, which revealed a rather handsome face. It was unblemished and chiseled.

"I still don't see why you wear that mask all the time, Aniki. Fangirls can't be that bad, can they?" Naruto asked, but got his answer at the involuntary shake his pseudo-brother gave at the term he had deemed the single worst word in existence. Naruto shook his head. He couldn't understand what a bunch of civilian girls, with the odd kunoichi here and there, could possibly do to a man who was both feared and respected throughout the land, for being able to anticipate and copy enemy movements and techniques.

"You'll understand some day, Otouto. Now eat up. If I'm right, you'll need all the strength you can get for what's to come in the next few years. So, you might as well get a head start now, right" Kakashi answered ominously, throwing in an eye smile at the end.

-Hokage's Office-

"Come in." said an old, tired voice, just after Kakashi knocked on the heavy oak doors leading to the village leader's office. Naruto and Kakashi walked in, seeing the Sandaime Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, sitting behind the desk with his trademark pipe in mouth. He waved them forward, and exhaled some smoke as he did.

"You called, Hokage-sama?" Kakashi asked, though he knew full well that he did, and had a general idea of what the elder wanted of him and his young charge.

"Yes Kakashi-kun, Naruto-kun, come in and take a seat." they did so as the old man gestured toward the two chairs in front of the desk he sat behind. "Do you know why I called you two here today?" he wizened man asked.

"I have a guess, but I'd like to know for sure." Kakashi replied, looking as casual as can be.

"Very well then, no beating around the bush, as it were. Kakashi-kun, not many people get this opportunity, and even less use it to its fullest," a brief pause as Sarutobi remembered his one-time star pupil. "but I'm willing to let you give it a shot. You've proved that your more than capable, what with the time you spent as an ANBU, then as an elite jonin when you volunteered to take care of young Naruto-kun here. I want to ask you how you would feel about taking young Naruto on as an apprentice when he graduates from the academy next year?" Sarutobi asked. He could see that the scarecrow was visibly shocked. And why shouldn't he be? Only the best of the best get to have apprentices, and sometimes not even then, as was the case with the Yondaime, and the Sandaime himself. Naruto, meanwhile was also shocked, but soon overcame that and practically begged his Aniki with his eyes to say yes. Even though he had taught Naruto a little bit in the way of the shinobi arts, like about chakra, chakra control and how to throw a wide variety of projectiles, this would mean that he could gain a LOT more knowledge from his fellow genius. Kakashi, meanwhile, was shocked. He expected to be able to teach the TEAM Naruto was going to be put on, not teach JUST Naruto. But hell, he wouldn't complain. That was two less brats to have to look after. 'Wait...' Kakashi chanced a look at Naruto. He probably shouldn't have. 'THAT'S why he wanted Naruto to come. To pressure me even more. Well, if I didn't want what he offered, it would have worked. As it is, it only makes the decision easier.' Kakashi mused.

"I'd love to, Hokage-sama. Shall we iron out the details at a later date. Naruto-kun looks like he wants to celebrate." Kakashi said, chuckling slightly toward the end as the blond was bouncing up and down with a huge grin on his face.

"That would be fine, Kakashi-kun. Now, off with the both of you. I have paperwork to def-I mean finish, and talking to you two is letting it build up." the old man crowed. They both stood up, bowed to the old man in charge, and left graciously.

-outside the office, on the streets-

"YES!" Naruto belted out at the top of his lungs. Kakashi had to cover his ears. 'He can be louder than Guy, and that has to be tough to do...' he thought. Out loud, he said,

"I wouldn't get too excited if I were you, Otouto. You still have a year in the academy to go through, and THEN we get to your apprenticeship. Honestly, I have no doubt that you'll pass that easily enough, but I wanna make a bet with you. I bet an A-rank jutsu, when I deem your ready, that you can't be rookie of the year. Just to let you know, that means that you will have to have the top grades in all the things the academy teaches, and with your size as compared to the other children in the graduating class, that is going to be very hard." Kakashi said with a smile in his lone eye. 'Here it comes...' he thought. Naruto's head had snapped to him when he heard 'jutsu' and he had to bite his knuckle to keep from interrupting the man.

"What! Are you serious Aniki?" Naruto asked, breathing slightly faster in excitement.

"Dead serious, Otouto." Kakashi said. 'He doesn't have to know just yet that I'd have taught him a few later on anyway. It's good motivation.' he reasoned to himself, and nodded in satisfaction. He stopped his inner thoughts when he noticed the pensive and serious look on Naruto's face. "What's wrong? I thought you'd be excited." he said.

"I am, it's just that you're right about the size being an issue. I'm not strong enough physically right now to be much of a threat. So, I wanna be like Tou-san and be wicked fast. I'll hit hard, yes, but I'll be faster than I am strong." he looked Kakashi in the eye. "Do you know if Tou-san left the Hiraishin no jutsu behind in some sort of written form for me to learn from, or do you know it?, or am I gonna have to make something else entirely?" he asked the semi-stunned scarecrow. "No, don't answer those. I will make something else entirely. I don't want to be great because of the work of another. I'll create my own Space/Time ninjutsu, and I'll make Kaa-san and Tou-san proud of me." he spoke again. Then he addressed Kakashi directly. "Could you teach me Fuinjutsu? Please Aniki?" Naruto asked. By this time Kakashi was over his shock, and only looked on as a proud older brother as his Otouto came to a good and tough decision by himself.

"I'll teach you what I can, but the only time you'll ever use it is when either I, Hokage-sama, or Jiraiya-sama are around. Fuinjutsu is a very tricky art even for masters. Understand?" Kakashi said in a stern tone that left no room for arguments. Naruto quickly nodded his head, knowing that there must be specific reasons, more so than "it's tricky", his Aniki laid down such rules.

"Yea, I got it. Now let's get away from that topic, and move on to the more important thing at the moment. We are going to celebrate at Ichiraku's Ramen Bar, right?" Naruto asked, raising an inquisitive eyebrow at the end. He probably needn't have asked though. That was where they always celebrated, since the proprietor treated Naruto like his own son. It wasn't like the rest of the village treated Naruto bad, but remaining indifferent isn't much better. The cause of the indifference was that it was common knowledge that Naruto was the Yondaime's son, but it was also common knowledge that he was the kyuubi jinchuriki, and so people weren't quite sure what to think of the boy. Some actually denied that he was the Yondaime's son, and said that he was only the demon trying to taunt them. Of course, that was the opinions of the civilians. All the shinobi knew the difference between a kunai and the scroll it's kept in. Couple that with the fact that Naruto is the son of the man that they all revered, and it's a safe bet to say that they all thought well of him. What made their respect for him go higher was that he never let it go to his head. He knew who he was, and didn't try to pretend, say, or act like anyone but him. Granted, he's still a little kid and they can be pretty fickle, but he was usually level headed most of the time.

"Why did you even bother to ask? Ever since you ate there a few weeks ago, that's all you've wanted to eat, and I, being the good brother that I am, indulge you, no matter how it may stunt your growth later on." he said, casually pulling out a little orange book, and giggling perversely. Naruto froze.

"You mean to say that if I keep eating ramen, I won't get as big as I'm supposed to?!" Naruto half shrieked. Ramen was delicious! And it was making him smaller?

"That's about the gist of it Otouto." Kakashi said, only half listening as he flipped a page.

"NOOOOO!" Naruto cried to the skies as he dropped to his knees, defeated. How could something so good be so bad? Kakashi knelt down next to him as he looked to the ground. He put a hand on his shoulder, and led the small boy to his feet.

"Come on Naruto. Now you know that ramen is a sometimes food, and not an all day food. Let's go home. We have to start on your fuinjutsu, speed, and taijutsu training. We're going to stop at a store on the way home and grab some supplies. Come on." Kakashi said as he half dragged the boy while reading his book.

-Weapons Shop-

As they walked into the small, inconspicuous shop, Naruto looked around at the wide range of weaponry and products with steadily widening eyes. He could not really fathom how there were so many different varieties of weapons. It seemed as though there was a weapon for every situation and station in life. Katanas, tonfa, wakizashi, tanto, gauntlets and even a naginata at the back, above everything else. As he looked around, there was one thing in the shop is particular that caught his eye, but before he could got a better look, Kakashi was greeted by the man behind the counter, who had watched Naruto's reaction with a bit of humor.

"Welcome Kakashi, what can I help you with?" the owner asked. In addition to being a former ninja, Kakashi shopped here regularly, and so was easily recognized.

"Nothing much today, I'm afraid. Just some chakra-driven training weights, and maybe some beginner fuinjutsu supplies. All for Naruto." answered the scarecrow. He too had watched Naruto's reaction to all the supplies in the store, and thought that it was funny. Although, the boy had never been so enthralled by anything so much as what he was looking at in the back part of the store.

"Alright then. Let's get the boy measured up for the weights. Do you want seals with those that make them change size to fit the boy as he grows?" the owner asked.

"Of course. I want the very same load-out you'd give me, Hiro." Kakashi responded to the owner, Hiro. Hiro nodded in acceptance, and set to work in pulling out tape measures and some sealing supplies. He gestured for Naruto to come over to him, and once he did so, began taking measurements.

"Why do I need to get measured for training weights, sir?" a curious Naruto asked the man as he wrote down the final measurement. What was there really to worry about? Wasn't there standard weights or something?

"Well, these are going to be specialized weights perfectly fit for you and only you. Other people may wear them, yes, but these will only be VERY effective for you since these weights work off of the first chakra donor who wears them. Meaning, that they will respond best to you because of the sheer density and amount of chakra you put in them. At first they will likely allow any chakra to be used to fuel them, but eventually they will only take yours. Which means that you could, potentially, use them to weigh someone else down, and they would be able to get them off because of the weights only responding to your chakra. Couple that with the seals I'll put on them to make them nearly unbreakable and you have one mean combination, right?" Hiro asked the boy. Then he addressed Kakashi. "Come on back sometime next week, and they'll be ready then. Now, what sealing supplies were you after? Just a bottle of ink, a few scrolls, and a brush or is there more?" Hiro asked the man.

"Nope, that's about all we'll need. Thank you, Hiro." Kakashi said, and the man waved him off.

"Think nothing of it. By the way, he starts the academy this year, yes?" Hiro asked the man, looking at Naruto as he did. Kakashi nodded his head yes. "Well then, as a matter of face, I'll make you and the kid a deal. IF, and this is a very big if, he can make Rookie of the Year, I'll let each of you choose one thing in the shop to have completely and totally free once he graduates." Hiro said, catching Naruto's attention when the term 'Rookie of the Year' was brought up. "Sound good?" he asked Kakashi and Naruto.

"You bet it does Hiro-san! Just you wait. I'll be Rookie of the Year and get something from you, and a jutsu from Aniki!" Naruto said, very happy with how things were turning out. Kakashi just nodded with an eye smile, enjoying the idea of free anything, to be honest.

"Then we're in agreement? Will the fuinjutsu supplies be all for you, then? And just call me Hiro, kid. I feel old when you call me -san." Hiro said.

"Okay, and I want to know if you have any books on fuinjutsu too. I know Aniki can teach me a lot, but he can't teach me everything." the blond said, a contemplative look on his face. Before the man could respond, Kakashi cut in.

"We'll get a book from the Hokage when we go to meet up with him to finalize all the details of your apprenticeship, Otouto." Kakashi told him. Naruto nodded in understanding. Why buy one when the most powerful shinobi in the village would give you a free one that he obviously recommends?

"Okay. Now, Naruto I want you to wait outside for me for a moment, okay?" Kakashi asked. Naruto wrinkled his brow, but nodded in acceptance and left the shop. Kakashi turned to Hiro, and asked, "I take it you saw what he had his eyes on, then?". Hiro nodded.

"Yes, I saw. I plan on pulling it, and keeping it in the back for when he actually becomes a ninja. I thought it would be a nice graduation present if he doesn't manage Rookie of the Year, but I think he will. He's got the motivation. A free weapon from me, and a jutsu that he was going to learn anyway from you. I think he'll do it." Hiro said, nodding to himself at the end.

"You understood that then? I thought it would be good motivation. He doesn't have to know that he would've learned that from me anyway. He'll find out eventually, but not now." Kakashi said to the chuckling man.

"Too true. I'll keep your 'secret', but I want to know how well he does in his training. He has a lot of potential, Kakashi. His parents would be proud of him." Hiro said, remembering the Yondaime and his wife fondly.

"Yes, they would." he said somberly. He turned to leave, with the bag of sealing supplies he had paid for whilst talking. "Good day, Hiro." Kakashi said.

"Bye Kakashi." Hiro responded in kind. Once Kakashi got outside, he noticed that there was a storm brewing.

'Odd. It was sunny out not an hour ago...' he thought to himself. He looked around for Naruto, and found him staring at the sky in morbid fascination. It was always like this. The blond, for some reason, loved storms. It started raining as Kakashi was thinking. 'What could have changed in the last hour for such a storm to come so quickly?' he thought. Out loud, he said,

"Naruto, come on. Let me Shunshin us home." Kakashi said as he heard thunder. The blond turned to him, and began the five meter walk to his Aniki. With each step he took, for some reason, Kakashi got more and more nervous. When Naruto was halfway to Kakashi, his nerves proved to be right. Naruto was suddenly struck violently by lightning. Had Kakashi been on guard, he'd have likely been able to cut the bolt before it hit Naruto, but he was home, and not expecting an attack in any capacity. Everyone knew he was the toughest jonin the leaf had. Why would they attack him? He could only watch in muted horror as the boy was struck. Then, as quickly as it came, it was gone. There stood Naruto, a bit singed, but fine physically. Kakashi couldn't believe his eyes. He knew how much damage a bolt of lightning could do. When he cut one with his Raikiri, he was exhausted for a solid three days before he began to regain his strength back.

"WHOA! That was close! Did you see that, Aniki? A bolt of lightning hit right next to me!" the blond shrieked. So that's what he thought happened? Didn't he feel the heat? The pain? He rushed over to Naruto, checking him over as soon as he arrived. "What are you doing? Didn't you hear me? It hit next to me." Naruto said as he watched Kakashi reach up and reveal his Sharingan eye, which quickly began to rove around Naruto.

'Amazing...' he thought, looking the boy in the eye, and seeing a pale purple arc of lighting pass over them as he did. 'How did he...' Kakashi began to wonder.

"Naruto, that bolt of lightning hit you. Not next to you, it actually HIT YOU." Kakashi said, shocking the boy.

A/N: Thanks to any who reviewed. That was actually the motivation behind making another chapter so quickly. I was shocked at the positive comments. I honestly didn't expect much of anything in the way of feedback, but I'm glad I got it. Thank you. Now, I want to say that I am still unsure of the pairing, and that I have no idea what weapon to give Naruto. If you have an opinion on either, drop a review or pm me. I wanna know what you guys think. Also, see my profile. There's a couple things there that may interest you.


	3. Now we know

**A/N: thank you for enduring the wait to this rather meager story. I fully intend to go back and revamp it. It doesn't meet the length desires I have for it. I originally wanted at least 10,000 words per chapter. Then I started typing, and it was a lot harder than I thought it would be. It may not be 10,000 per chapter when I do re-do it, but it will be a hell of a lot longer than it is currently, and I think I should nip this in the bud before I become complacent. I may let a nice backlog pile up so that if I ever have a day where I don't get to write, then I can just upload a chapter that has already been written. Also, I have decided that this story will be a Naruto/Mei T. Pairing. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.**

====== One Year Later ======

This year had been rather eventful, as far as Naruto was concerned. Normally children started the shinobi academy when they were eight years old. This, of course, was not mandatory. Just another option as opposed to the, admittedly, boring life of a civilian. However there are exceptions to the 'eight year old' rule. Times of war was one such exception. After all, how else were they supposed to replenish the ranks they lose in all of the combat their side takes part in? Another exception was a more rare case: prodigies. Specifically, geniuses the likes of which only occurs once in a generation, or maybe even a lifetime. It just so happens that one Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto was one such genius.

He started the academy at the ripe age of five. He then turned six about a week into the new school year. His times were filled with many people looking down on him because of his size or the fact that he was six, but he persevered. His Aniki had told him that people were like that because they were jealous of his skill and talent in the shinobi arts. He saw the logic in that. It didn't matter though, as he quickly moved through the years and eventually found himself in the graduating class about four months before they were supposed to graduate.

He worked studiously in class, and vigorously outside of it. In class, he had memorized all major events that were covered in the classes(which allowed him to test out of the lower years), and he had also been able to hit all the targets that the academy teachers set up in order to test precision and accuracy with a set of kunai and shuriken. Doing so allowed him to enter the graduating class(he had really only needed to hit half of them). So then, once he got to the graduating class, he had worked himself into the ground to learn the henge and Kawarimi, but quickly found out that the normal academy-grade bunshin was beyond his grasp. He went to the Hokage, who he had found to be almost grandfatherly over the last year, to ask why. He had originally wanted to go to his Aniki, but this was one of the times he was out of the village getting everything prepared for the training trip he wanted to take Naruto on. The Hokage had quickly deduced the problem as being a direct result of his huge amount of chakra, and not a lot of control of it. He had set the blond up with a different kind of bunshin, a Mizu bunshin, because it was more chakra-intensive than the regular bunshin, but not to the degree of the kage bunshin, which the old kage said he would show Naruto if he didn't already know it when he got back from his training trip.

Outside of the academy, Naruto had also worked a lot on his elements, and while he can't use any jutsu with them(he still hasn't gotten to the point that he can change them at will), he was discovering a few new things. If he focused, and focused hard, and released a lot of chakra, he could slightly change the weather. Of course, it could have been coincidence, but the blonde thought that going from a completely sunny day to slight drizzling was a bit weird. Especially since that was what he was in the mood for, but rather than drizzling, he wanted a downpour. He had also noticed a cool ability to shock people when he touched them at will. This had played into his taijutsu style. Every hit would shock severely enough to leave an area slightly numb. Not enough to need to be seriously concerned about paralysis, but enough to be able to tip the scale to his favor in a fight against the older students. Especially if he hit someplace that is actually used best while you can feel it, like the hands or feet. He has worked tirelessly to be able to do this at will, and to perfect the timing. He needed to because any prolonged fight would drain him of chakra since that was what powered this odd ability. At least, that's what the academy instructor had said when he found out Naruto was shocking people for fun one day. His Aniki had said the same thing, and volunteered to help when he could. Fuinjutsu was an easy subject for the blonde. He just got it. His Aniki said that his Tou-san said the same thing, which made the boy smile. He was glad he could do something his old man could do as well. It made him feel closer to the man in some way. He couldn't really explain it. He was also working tirelessly on discovering a taijutsu style that was based more in speed rather than strength. He was six, so didn't have much strength. He had an abundance of speed, though that likely came from the amount of weight his body actually had on it constantly thanks to the training weights he had got from Hiro. After all, he wore those weights religiously. His goal was to be as fast as his Tou-san, who could be anywhere he wanted to be in a split second thanks to his Hiraishin no jutsu, which allowed him to seemingly teleport. Of course, anyone who saw the move in action realized that was the case: there was a yellow flash and he was gone. Naruto didn't want to get anywhere on his father's work, so he was going to try to make a different Space/Time ninjutsu. He didn't know how he was going to do it, but he'd figure it out.

Currently, he was walking out of the academy, with his hitae-ate firmly in place diagonally across his chest as though he were wearing a back pack. He had to request that one of the teachers get one that had extra long extensions. He was on his way to his estate where he would make his Aniki pay up that jutsu, as the certificate in his hand proved that he managed to get the rookie of the year award. Although, it was easier for him. He had less points overall, and so had a higher average than the other students. He thought that this little fact made the efforts of all the other students void, but didn't comment on it. After all, he was getting an A-class jutsu from his Aniki. Why should he?

As he walked, he saw the civilian side of Konoha looking at him with small smiles. Well, a majority of them were. There were others who brightly smiled at him, and others who didn't know what to make of him. He saw this as a good sign. A sign that things would go his way, and he enjoyed that feeling while it lasted. His Aniki had repeatedly told him that all good things come to an end, just as all bad things do. Very few things are forever, and those that are, usually are so because they are ideas and beliefs, not material things. This, though, didn't have to last forever. Just for the rest of his life. He could handle not being worshiped, but he didn't think he could handle the ENTIRE village hating him. He finished his thoughts as he made it to the district he lived in.

He walked the familiar path to his estate that he shared with his Aniki, and put some chakra into the seal on the gate. His estate's outside was just as simple as the inside. It was painted a light brown, with spots of a deep red(like his mother's hair, he mused), and was surrounded on all sides by a five meter high wall. The gate was a regular, rose designed gate with a circle in the middle about as big as his head, and in the center of the circle was a small seal, only about the width of his palm. This was a security seal, and it was a right nasty piece of work his mother had done in an effort to keep her child safe in her later life. It was a seal that projected an invisible, to the naked eye, wall of chakra that burned anything it touched to ashes immediately. It was basically a jutsu in seal form, although he can never remember the name of the jutsu. One had to enter by putting chakra into the seal, and having it match up to one of the chakra signatures keyed into the very foundation of the house, which was the main power source for the seal: the natural energy of the surrounding area. That is why all the gardens were pushed back to the middle of the back yard, and not up against the house. Of course, there was also a seal for moderating the amount that the barrier seal took in. It would not do to have the seal kill everything around it, and prevent anything from growing at all in the near future. He needed those. Moving the gardens were only for caution. He didn't want the beautiful flowers in the garden to die. Ever. From what Aniki had told him, they were the pride and joy of his mother before she got pregnant.

He entered the house, and wasn't surprised to see Kakashi eagerly, or as eagerly as his Aniki gets, awaiting to hear what his news was. Like he couldn't tell from the hitae-ate. Naruto pointed to his chest as he walked toward Kakashi.

"I graduated, and I am rookie of the year." he stated, holding out the certificate proving his claim. Kakashi took the certificate, and looked it over once.

"Very good, Otouto." he said, all eye smiles. "Now, come along. We have to go to Hiro's. He has something for you." Kakashi said. Naruto quirked an eyebrow.

"Why would he have something for me?" he asked.

"...You graduated." Kakashi answered in a slow tone, implying Naruto was mentally slow. Naruto's face soured a bit.

"I know that. I was there. I want to know why he wanted to give me something when he knows he didn't have to." Naruto said.

"Oh. Lead with that next time." Kakashi eye smiled. "If you must know, he has taken a special interest in you. He held something back for this day, just for you." he spoke. Naruto grinned.

"Well let's go then! We can't keep him waiting!" He yelled. '_Who doesn't like free stuff?' _He reasoned to himself.

======At Hiro's Shop======

Kakashi walked into the store with a giddy Naruto. He was going to get one of these nice, high end weapons for free as a graduation present. He started looking around eagerly as Hiro finally noticed the pair. He waved them over.

"Ohayo, Kakashi, Naruto-kun. Welcome. What brings you here?" he asked, only to stop the response he would have gotten. "Ahhh. A hitae-ate. You graduated then?" he asked. Naruto nodded, and then looked at Kakashi. Kakashi nodded once, signaling that he fulfilled the conditions he was unknowingly under. Hiro looked back at Naruto. "So you are here for the gift, then?" he asked, and Naruto nodded so quickly he could have gotten whiplash. "Alright, wait here then." Hiro said as he turned around to walk deeper into the shop behind the counter. In short order, he had returned with a slim object about fifteen inches long, and presented it to Naruto.

Naruto looked at the blade reverently. This was the very same blade he had looked at the first time he came in the store. How had the man known that Naruto was so in love with it? He looked at the man behind the counter, who gestured for Naruto to take the blade. Naruto did so, gently picking it up. The six inch handle was a solid black, with slight wisps of white in it every so often, with the sheathe bearing the same design and continuing wherever the handle's design left off. Naruto grasped the handle firmly, and pulled. Doing so revealed to Naruto's eyes a shiny, nine inch silver blade he could see his eyes in. As he did, he saw a flash of purple in his eyes. This didn't shock him, as it had been a regular occurrence ever since he was struck by lightning that day. He still had not figured out what it meant. He did not dwell on that, though. He shifted the blade to a reverse grip and gave a few swings. While it was a tad heavy for the six year old, he knew he would adjust to it. He replaced the blade, and looked up at the owner of the store with gratitude.

"Thank you, Hiro-jii." he said, and then looked at Kakashi. "I know you had a hand in this too, Aniki, so thank you as well." he said, and then bowed to them both. This, naturally shocked them. Naruto wasn't really one for formality, but he knew when it was necessary.

"Come on, Naruto. We have to get ready to leave." Kakashi said. Naruto nodded, and they left the shop after wishing Hiro good luck. They left tomorrow morning, and they wouldn't see him for a long time after all.

====== Morning at The Gates ======

At the gates, Naruto and Kakashi were speaking with the Sandaime Hokage and preparing to leave on the training trip that they started planning just about one year ago.

"You two be careful, and Kakashi-kun, I expect monthly updates about where he is at in skill, and about how he is doing aside from training. Also, I was thinking about the trip. Send me a message a month before you plan on heading to Mizu no Kuni to help in the effort, if it's still happening. Even though it just started, it could end before you get there." spoke the old man.

"I will Hokage-sama, and may I ask why you want to know when we will go to Mizu?" Kakashi questioned the Hokage. The Hokage just smiled a smile that screamed 'I know something you don't know' and shook his head.

"You'll understand in time, Kakashi-kun. Now, do you have everything packed?" Sarutobi asked the two of them. When they nodded (although Naruto nodded in a groggy way, he noticed), he ushered them out. "Then off with you! I want you two to have as many adventures and experiences as possible, and the most time you can to have them all in." spoke the old man again. They nodded, and headed out. They had no idea what experiences would await them.

**A/N: there will be a much longer delay for the next chapters than there was for this one, which I'm sorry about. I had NO motivation to speak of. Also, I've decided for my next story that I will do a Fem!Kakashi fic. **


End file.
